Published on June 16, 2009.

If ever there was a movie that had a meaning of “don’t do this or it could be you,” the 1987 film “Fatal Attraction” is it. The movie focuses on the repercussions of a one-night stand between Dan Gallagher (Michael Douglas) and Alex Forrest (Glenn Close).

While Dan’s wife and daughter are out of town, he has dinner with Forrest which, as you probably guessed, turns into a steamy one night affair. After their night together, Dan tells Forrest that he has to go home and finish work before his family returns. In an attempt to get him to stay, Forrest slits her wrists, which causes him to stay the night. And that’s just the beginning of the craziness.

Forrest won’t take “no” for an answer, and when Dan ignores her phone calls and messages at work, she starts calling his home. After being harassed, Dan agrees to meet with her and during their meeting, she claims to be pregnant. It didn’t seem like much time had elapsed since their night together and her alleged doctor appointment. Naturally, Dan was none too thrilled about her choice and didn’t want any part of the child’s life. If I had been Dan, I would have been skeptical as to whether or not she was actually pregnant — at the very least, it seems like it would have been too soon to tell.

At this point, Dan should have told his wife, Beth Gallagher (Anne Archer). Forrest had already threatened to tell Beth, so he should have taken that power away from her. It would have upset her, but he wouldn’t have to worry about catering to Forrest’s every demand in fear that Beth would find out.

When the Gallagher family returns from visiting family, the daughter finds her rabbit missing from its cage. Beth finds the rabbit dead, boiling in a pot of water. After this, Dan decides to go ahead and confess to his wife about his night with Forrest, and that, along with the destruction of his car, was enough to send Dan over the edge. He goes to Forrest’s apartment and attacks her. Without a word spoken, he forces his way in, chases her around the apartment and almost strangles her to death.

Dan shouldn’t have let things escalate as much as they did. He should have come clean about his affair when Forrest put what appeared to be acid on his car. The first sign she was crazy was when she slit her wrists. Nobody in their right mind should have that much of a problem with someone leaving their home after a night of intimacy. Even though it shows he’s a caring man, he should have picked up his stuff and ran when he saw the blood. Forrest’s constant calling would have been enough to send me through the roof. How Dan didn’t strangle her is beyond me.

The movie is a prime example why people should not commit adultery. It’s a crazy movie, but I enjoy that it’s realistic. While it is dramatic and might not happen to everyone who has an affair, there’s always a chance the person could be psycho.